Extendable Extruded Door Frame for Custom Wall Widths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing door frame construction methods result in uneven visual aesthetics, particularly in modern décor styles, due to the interlocking difficulties of prior art frame components, mismatched widths leading to unstable joints, and gaps around door frames, which are undesirable for clean, sharp lines and uniform appearances.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution involves an extendable extruded door frame component that can be cut to fit custom wall widths, using extruded aluminum with adjustable flanges and extension plates to maintain a seamless appearance, and employing alternative installation methods like L-shaped brackets and jam extensions to ensure flush and uniform edges.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional metal door frames are made from extruded aluminum components cut to desired height, then the frame can be installed in standard door openings, but the frame components have fixed widths that must match predefined combinations of wall and drywall widths, limiting adaptability to custom wall widths
Solution Approach 1:
The door frame component is divided into multiple sections along its width, with at least one section being extendable. This segmentation allows the frame to be adjusted to different wall widths by extending or compressing the intermediate section, while maintaining the overall structural integrity and appearance of a continuous frame.
Solution Approach 2:
The frame component incorporates an extendable section that can dynamically adjust its width. This dynamic feature allows the frame to adapt to custom wall widths that differ from standard dimensions, transforming a static component into a flexible solution that maintains both adaptability and structural stability.
2Ease of manufacture
If frame components are designed with fixed widths to match standard wall dimensions, then manufacturing is simplified, but installation becomes difficult when wall widths deviate from standard combinations, requiring additional drywall extensions that create unstable joints
Solution Approach 1:
The frame is segmented into fixed-width end sections and an extendable intermediate section. This allows the end sections to maintain standard dimensions for simplified manufacturing, while the intermediate section provides the necessary adjustment capability for custom wall widths, eliminating the need for additional drywall extensions and unstable joints.
Solution Approach 2:
The frame component's width parameter is made variable through the extendable section. This allows the overall width to be changed to match custom wall dimensions while keeping the manufacturing process for the individual components relatively simple, as the extendable section can be designed with standard extrusion profiles that accommodate adjustment mechanisms.
3Adaptability or versatility
If drywall extensions are added to accommodate wider wall studs, then the frame can fit custom wall widths, but the joint between metal frame and drywall becomes unstable and prone to cracking, compromising reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The frame's extendable section provides a metal-to-metal connection that maintains structural integrity and stability across varying wall widths. This eliminates the need for drywall extensions that create weak joints, as the extendable frame section directly spans the wall opening and connects to the wall structure at its endpoints, ensuring reliable load transfer and resistance to cracking.
Solution Approach 2:
The extendable frame section creates a continuous metal structure that composite-like behavior across different wall widths. This continuous metal construction provides uniform strength and stability, replacing the composite of metal frame plus drywall extension with a purely metal solution that maintains reliability across the entire span.
4Ease of operation
If gaps are left around door frames for ventilation or aesthetic purposes, then functional requirements are met, but the visual appearance becomes uneven and curved, conflicting with modern décor requirements for sharp lines and uniform appearance
Solution Approach 1:
The extendable frame section allows for precise local adjustment of the frame's position and dimensions. This enables the creation of uniform, controlled gaps around the door opening while maintaining sharp, straight lines. The local adjustability ensures that gaps are consistent in width and properly positioned, transforming them from visual defects into deliberate design features that satisfy both functional ventilation requirements and aesthetic uniformity.
Solution Approach 2:
The frame's position and dimensional parameters can be precisely adjusted through the extendable section to create uniform gaps around the door opening. This parameter control allows gaps to be intentionally designed for ventilation while maintaining sharp, straight edges and consistent spacing, ensuring that the visual appearance remains uniform and符合 modern décor requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
A door frame component is provided. The door frame includes: a front wall, a rear wall, an outer wall and an inner wall; a length of the front wall being substantially the same as a distance between the inner wall and the outer wall; an internal cavity at least partially defined by space between the inner wall and outer wall; and opposing first and second gripping sections defined in the internal cavity at least partially by first and second internal flanges in the internal cavity. The frame has sufficient structural integrity such that when the frame is cut height wise between the first and second internal flanges into front and rear sections, the front section can support a door on its own without the rear section.